Darkness and Light
by Lady Artimes Blaine
Summary: Khan is awoken from his cold sleep by the unlikeliest of people, a human woman named Artimes. During their quest to revive his crew, he begins to realize that there is more to humanity than he once thought. Will the light banish the darkness or will he extinguish that light and be forever trapped in the darkness of his very own heart? *After the events of Star Trek: Into Darkness*
1. Chapter 1: Awakening

Lady A: Hello everyone and welcome to Darkness and Light. I apologize to those waiting on other stories, but due to a recent bout of depression and my inspiration suddenly evaporating, I have been unable to update as I should. This story is inspired by my very own heart and how no matter what obstacles I face; the loss of friends, of purpose, and of direction, I always seem to come back. No matter how many times I am plunged into the darkness, the light of my heart, even if it flickers and dims, will guide me back.

So let me say this now: Never give up, never surrender, and never quit. Your heart shines with the light of your very own star and it will always be a beacon of hope to guide you through the darkness of our world. With that being said, I present Darkness and Light.

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><p>Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek: Into Darkness or anything else of the Trek franchise. This is fan fictional only.<p>

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><p>Chapter One: Awakening<p>

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><p>Warmth…warmth flowed through his body and thawed his aching muscles. The sound of his blood rushing through his veins pulsed loudly in his ears. His mind was heavy, sluggish, and slow to respond. He heard a faint clicking sound before the sound of sliding metal berated on his ear drums.<p>

The smell of earth and soil tickled his nose, drawing his mind further from the oblivion of sleep and closer to awareness. He heard the sounds of machinery; gears grinding along at a laboring pace, beeps and whistles indicating its operating status, and the groaning of metal as it tried to remain functioning. All indicators pointed to the conclusion of possible, if not, highly immanent mechanical failure.

His heart sped up as a barely warm and smooth hand cupped his right cheek. Soft skin, small size, and the gentleness of the touch eluded to female rather than to male.

"Awake now?" A voice asked.

The validity of his prior conclusion was confirmed. The owner of the hand was indeed a woman. Her voice was soft, so soft that it was barely above a whisper, but it seemed to hold the level of worry, not mere concern. He forced his heavy eyelids open, allowing his eyes to adjust to the dim lighting. The image of the woman became clearer and seemed to be surrounded by a faint blue glow, presumably from whatever light source that was being used in order to illuminate the room.

She had dark red hair, very close to the color of spilt blood and her eyes were quite unusual, a liquid and almost iridescent sapphire. She appeared to be in her late twenties and was physically attractive. He calculated that she was human, given that there were no other physically identifiable traits of other species present in her features.

"Who…" He started his voice hoarse and his throat aching from disuse and the lingering effects of cryo sleep.

"Artimes." She answered beaming at him, her eyes alight with happiness.

Why was she so happy? He had only spoken one word yet that word brought her such joy. Her head turned at the sound of sparking and she removed her hand. He frowned at the sudden disconnection, his body missing her touch. She left his field of vision forcing him to turn his head to follow her. He saw an assortment of power cells and at least two, no, three generators. They were all wired together and clearly providing power to the cryo tube he was lying in.

"No, no, no!" She cried out as she knelt down and tried to stop the equipment from sparking.

She jerked her hands back a few times, being singed by the sparks. Finally, the entire array fried itself into oblivion.

"No." She whispered a tear sliding down her cheek.

He sat up slowly, his body protesting greatly whilst it shot spikes of pain throughout his entire nervous system.

"Why do you cry?" He asked wondering why the loss of the power array would be so important to shed tears over.

"No power…can't save…must build more…must help others." She answered her speech extremely fragmented as she looked back at him with sad eyes.

"What others?" He asked swinging his legs out of the tube.

"Like you…in pods. Need power…to wake up." She answered supporting him when his legs tried to give out upon standing.

He leaned heavily on her, his thoughts racing. His crew was dead, were they not and yet she spoke as if they were alive. It was highly logical that the Vulcan had removed the cryo tubes prior to detonating them while on the Vengeance. It was statistically more likely when factoring in Spock's human half and his friendship with Kirk, leading to the conclusion that he possessed the same conscience as his captain.

"Take you…to pods…um…" She asked frowning at him in confusion.

She wanted to know his name and he didn't see any harm in it considering that she probably didn't have access to confidential Starfleet records. Also for the moment, he required her assistance until his body had had time to recover from the effects of cryo stasis and was unable to walk on his own at present.

"Khan and yes, please." He answered looking down at her.

She was approximately five feet nine inches. She was wearing a very worn shirt that had obviously been repaired many times. The pants were in a similar state and had several patches of newer material to hold it together. The boots she was wearing, no doubt dwarfed her feet, was three sizes too big and was held together by wires rather than laces. She also wore a handmade utility belt with many pockets that contained an assortment of tools, wires, and what looked to be small glowing shards.

Her knowledge of mechanics and technology indicated a superior intellect along with a knack for being inventive, but her verbal skills were severely lacking. It was obvious that she didn't spend very much time around people who spoke frequently which suggested that she was isolated or possibly alone. It was highly unlikely that she was self-taught and the repairs to her clothing were quite good indicating many years of practice thus denoting the possibility of another person who was older.

The pair walked through what appeared to be a system of interconnecting caves. Crystals were embedded in the walls and along the ground in odd places. These crystals glowed liked the shards she carried and offered what appeared to be the only means of a light source in the otherwise pitch dark caves.

After several minutes, he became acutely aware of the distinct lack of people. Was she alone? How long had she been there? If there were no people, then it would explain her fragmented speech and its simplistic nature. Then it dawned on him. The reason why she smiled so brightly when he spoke…it was because she hadn't heard anyone talk to her in a very long time. It certainly would explain her actions up to that point. He still had many questions, but he would have to be patient with her if he wanted to get the answers.

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><p>Lady A: There you have it. Chapter 1: Awakening is complete. Be on the lookout for Chapter 2: Shakirans.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2: Shakirans

Lady A: I have returned and with my arrival comes a new chapter. Welcome back to Darkness and Light! Be forewarned, not all of these chapters will be pleasant. Take into account that Khan is still Khan and he is still a badass. Eventually this story will become a little lighter as it progresses.

Jim: Why are you doing a Khan story at all? You should be focusing on The Carmine Conundrum.

Lady A: *chuckles* Not just yet, Captain.

Khan: *smirks* It would seem that Kirk misses being the center of your attention, Lady A.

Jim: *shoots him a death glare*

Lady A: *giggles* Aww, so cute. He misses me. Sorry Jim, but Khan needs me for right now. Don't worry, I won't forget about you, I promise.

Jim: *stalks off*

Khan: Lady A, the chapter if you please.

Lady A: *nods* On with the show, my lovely readers!

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><p>Chapter Two: Shakirans<p>

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><p>The pair walked into a larger chamber where there were several larger crystals protruding from the ground along the outer rim of the cavern, lighting the entire space within. However, this was not what drew Khan's immediate attention. There was a large heap of junk in the center of the cave; consoles, crates, random pieces of fabric and upholstery, wood, broken equipment, and all sorts of odds and ends mixed in.<p>

He looked up towards the cave ceiling and took notice of a smooth, artificially created shaft, several meters in diameter. It was at least three maybe four miles high and it led to a covered access way, no doubt sealed shut. There was no means of scaling the walls of the shaft, even with proper equipment, which meant that he and his crew would not be able to escape that way.

"Where does that lead?" He asked drawing the young woman's attention to the shaft.

"Bad place…Shakirans." She answered her voice quivering slightly.

She had every right to be afraid of them. Shakirans were a race of beings that held a somewhat humanoid shape, but they had no eyes or noses; just mouths with razor sharp teeth. They absorbed energy from living beings whether animal or human, but the energy that they required to sustain their physical form was unique and sometimes difficult to find. Their quest to locate this energy led to the creation of places such as the one they were standing in now, a dumping ground.

Shakirans had a nasty habit of creating dump sites for the objects or beings that didn't possess the energy they were looking for. They had thousands, if not millions, of the sites all over the galaxy. If one of the dumping grounds were discovered, it would simply be abandoned and they would start a new one somewhere else.

They showed no mercy and could not be persuaded. They were an enemy even Khan, himself, knew better than to mess with. Better to kill them at a distance than run the risk of what other species refer to as the reaper's kiss by being in close range of their mouths. Shakirans could withdraw the energy from any living body, killing it almost instantly, or they could inject their own energy into the body and create a creature known as a shadow wraith, a being with no feelings and was nothing more than a killing machine.

Khan finally removed his attention from the shaft and the possible threat to him and his crew and looked around the cave. His eyes widened slightly as he caught sight of his family's cryo tubes. They had been dragged from the junk pile to line the edges of the cavern. His crew really was alive. He looked down at the red haired woman a moment. Why would she try to help them and how did they even end up in a Shakiran dumping ground? Better yet, how did she?

"How long have you been here?" He asked trying to understand the red head.

If he could attain a somewhat accurate timeline of events, he may understand her better and discovered roughly when they had been dropped into the cave.

"Since three." She answered as she urged him to move around the junk heap.

He complied and they began to walk slowly around it.

"Three years old? You've been here for over…twenty five years?" He asked brows furrowing in confusion.

She nodded and glanced up at him, her iridescent blue eyes shining with curiosity.

"Where is everyone else? Are they any other people here?" He asked his own curiosity driving his mouth.

She shook her head.

"No…just me…alone. Learn from books…talking hard…not much prac-tice. I learn…I build…try to create…try to save…Shakirans bad. Stay alive…stay hidden…always re-mem-ber." She answered struggling with her words but conveying her message quite clearly.

She was alone for over twenty five years, had taught herself, had taken care of herself, was trying to help his crew, and avoid detection from the Shakirans. But how did she survive the fall in the first place? She was human, that much he was certain about. Then there was the question of her sanity. Spending so much time alone in the darkness should have driven her insane, yet here she was very much in her right mind and proving that she was a survivor and an inventor. How was it possible for someone like her to exist?

"Come…need help…proper burial." She said guiding him into a secondary cave.

Burial? Did some of his crew not survive the fall or did the Shakirans do something to them? He was so confused. A human who didn't make sense, being awoken in a Shakiran dumping ground, his crew alive…well most of them, and no means of escape at present. His mind was simply reeling and all he had to guide him was the human woman named Artimes.

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><p>Lady A: Chapter 2: Shakirans is complete. I think I actually mixed the followers of the Great Intelligence from The Name of the Doctor and the dementors of Harry Potter when coming up with the Shakirans. That's one freaky combination and almost scares me as much as the Weeping Angels. Right, be on the lookout for Chapter 3: A Proper Burial.<p> 


End file.
